The 2023 WNBA All-Star Weekend began on Friday with the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest. Sabrina Ionescu stole the show in the 3-point contest with a record-breaking performance in the championship round. She hit 20 straight shots at one point, missing only twice, and finished the game with 37 points, a record for a WNBA or NBA competition.
Ionescu’s effort was a revenge of sorts for the Skills Challenge, where she and Courtney Vandersloot were defeated in the championship round by Chelsea Gray and Kelsey Plum of Team Aces. Gray, the reigning Finals MVP, prevailed again at the event and secured the trophy for her team.
Here’s a recap of an exciting basket afternoon:
3-point competition
Closing out Friday’s action was the 3-point contest, which largely followed the classic format that has made it a staple of the WNBA and NBA All-Star Weekends. The main difference from this year’s competition was the addition of two “star” balls, placed well behind the 3-point line and worth three points each.
The stars of the first round were Sami Whitcomb and Sabrina Ionescu, who each hit both Starry balls worth three points and were consistent in all five games. Whitcomb had the highest first-round score with 28 points, while Ionescu finished with 26 points. They were also joined in the championship round by Arike Ogunbowale, who snagged the Money Ball rack and advanced four out of five.
DiJonai Carrington finished strong after a slow start but didn’t quite manage to break through, while Kelsey Mitchell and Jackie Young both struggled to find range and ended up running out of time. It wouldn’t have mattered in the end, but Young didn’t even bother to shoot any of the “star shots” for some reason.
Results of the first round:
Sami Whitcomb: 28 points
Sabrina Ionescu: 26 points
Arike Ogunbowale: 21 points
DiJonai Carrington: 18 points (retired)
Kelsey Mitchell: 15 points (eliminated)
Jackie Young: 15 points (eliminated)
In the championship round, Ionescu showed a record performance of 37 points. This is the highest score ever achieved in a WNBA or NBA competition. She fired 20 shots in a row at one point, both “Starry” shots, for a total of 25 out of 27 hits.
“I just focused on doing one thing at a time,” Ionescu said. “I wasn’t sure how many I would miss, but I knew it wasn’t many. I’m happy to have won that and thankful for the audience that cheered me on the whole time.”
Whitcomb finished the race with a respectable 24 points, but even that wasn’t nearly enough. Ogunbowale couldn’t find a rhythm in her second run and finished with just 11 points, which was the lowest score of the entire competition.
Championship round results:
Ionescu: 37 points
Whitcomb: 24 points (retired)
Ogunwobale: 11 points (eliminated
competency challenge
The core aspect of the Skills Challenge on the field remained the same this year as players completed an obstacle course that tested their skills in all aspects of the game. However, the format was changed to a team competition featuring four pairs of All-Star teammates.
Team Aces | Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young |
team dream | Allisha Gray, Cheyenne Parker |
Team Liberty | Sabrina Ionescu, Courtney Vandersloot |
Team Wings | Arike Ogunbowale and Satou Sabally |
In the first round, the Dream took it easy and ended up in last place, while the Wings were also eliminated. It’s worth noting that both teams had a large point guard, while the Aces and Liberty had two point guards, which gave them an advantage. These two teams also appeared to be taking the event most seriously, which is very important in timed competitions.
Results of the first round:
- Aces: 45.9 seconds
- Freedom: 47.8 seconds
- Wing: 52.6 seconds (retired)
- Dream: 58.7 seconds (eliminated)
The championship round was to be disappointing. Both Courtney Vandersloot and Sabrina Ionescu had major problems with the 3-point shooting aspects of the competition, taking nearly a minute to complete the circuit. Her 58 second mark was the second worst of the entire event.
While Kelsey Plum missed her chance in the title round, Chelsea Gray didn’t. The reigning Finals MVP is one of the best performing players in the league and she did everything to win the event for Team Aces with plenty of time.
Championship round results:
- Aces: 45 seconds
- Freedom: 58.0 seconds (eliminated)
“I practiced beforehand to do as many as possible,” Gray said. “It’s a cool event, it’s exciting, so I’m happy.”